


Black Water

by RiantMeretseger (Silver_storyteller)



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Merpeople, Eventual Monarch and Mobium in addition to Puzzle ships, Other, could be romantic or platonic, it's open to interpretation
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-01
Updated: 2019-08-15
Packaged: 2020-02-15 17:52:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 3,107
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18674578
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Silver_storyteller/pseuds/RiantMeretseger
Summary: The Siren has no memories of his past to guide him, just a fascination with a pirate.Yuugi never wanted to be a pirate, but the captain doesn't give him a choice, just a puzzle to solve.No one expected the Millennium Puzzle to ever be solved after it fell into the sea, but with its completion comes the return of the Shadow Games-- and the Spirit that controls them.





	1. Chapter 1

It is said that sailors who die with seawater in their lungs return from the deep as sirens, luring others to the same fate.

The siren doesn’t know how much of that is true-- _he’s_ certainly never lured any human to their death, but his own fate is a mystery. His first memory is waking up on the sea floor with his hand clenched around a jagged piece of gold. He thinks it must be a chunk broken off from some mainland trinket, shattered long ago when it was tossed into the sea, but he likes to think of it as a piece of a puzzle, just waiting for the rest of the pieces to be found for it to be whole again.

Most of what the siren knows, he learned from snatches of conversation overheard from sailors in their ships above, for he rarely meets others of his own kind. The ocean is simply too vast and sirens too few for paths to cross by chance often, and those he has met were groups hardly welcoming to outsiders.

Whatever doomed ship he fell from, he must have been the only one to drown, for when he woke, he was alone. He finds it hard to measure time, but it must have been decades-- possibly centuries-- before he met another siren, and they had no patience for a naive stranger. He does not know how old he is now, but he has been alone for a long time when he meets the human boy.

“Meets” is perhaps the wrong word, since awareness of the other is one-sided. The siren likes to follow ships to learn the words to their songs, and to give them a fright when they see his shadow in the water. It is while shadowing one such ship that he sees a young man who captivates him.

There are no mirrors in the siren’s collection of human detritus, the reflective surfaces obscured by rust or algae, but still, the siren recognizes an uncanny sameness between the human and himself, like their souls are calling to each other. The human’s skin is paler than his own, but the long bangs are a golden contrast to the rest of his dark, unruly locks in the same way that the siren’s are, and they appear to be the same age.

(The siren does not age, of course. He can easily count his years in the sea in millennia, yet his skin is smooth and his limbs are as strong as the day he woke.)

But it’s not just their similarities that draw the siren to him. He notes the kindness in the human’s face and the joy he shows at every game and riddle the crew can think of to pass the time. The siren eavesdrops from the waves in the night until he can put a name to the face that haunts him–Yugi. The young man’s name is Yugi.

The siren has seen many humans before on many different ships, but none have ever called to his heart like this one has. There’s so much more the siren wants to know, a reason he is drawn to this human in a way he’s never experienced in his long life before, and the siren knows listening from the water will never give him the answers he seeks. He decides it is time for him to get involved, to let the human see more of him than his shadow. The siren would have to walk on land.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cross-posted from Tumblr. The first three chapters will have some revisions from the original posts, but nothing too drastic.


	2. Chapter 2

Yugi's plan is not to become a pirate, but when you are given a pistol pressed to your head and a proposition, there is only one option that makes sense. In the end, Yugi considers himself lucky; Gozaburo Kaiba is not known as a man of mercy to those who try to fight his crew. 

It's his skill with puzzles and lockboxes that saves his and Jounouchi's lives that day. With the captain killed in the earlier battle, the only key to the trapped chest--with the merchant's most valuable merchandise inside--is in Yugi's brain. He is not sure what prompts him to bargain for Jounouchi's life as well as his own (they had not been friends until today), but he's glad when it works. 

Yugi's grandfather has taught him all sorts of tricks for locks and puzzles and anything else that would occupy a young and restless lad, and Captain Kaiba wastes no time in putting his skills to use. The merchant's treasure turns out to be underwhelming. The original object, whatever it was, could have netted a crew a small fortune--had it been in one piece. 

Coral divers from the Mediterranean had brought their haul to more lucrative shores, but the golden treasure they'd discovered on the sea floor had been broken into nothing but shards of gold untold years ago. Gozaburo looks at those shards now and scowls, seeing a waste of time. Yugi, however, looks closer, and he sees grooves and ridges where the pieces are meant to fit together. _Not an ornament,_ he thinks. _A puzzle._ The captain is skeptical at first, but an intact artifact would fetch a much higher price than scattered gold, so he drags Yugi into his private quarters, where Seto is waiting. 

Seto Kaiba: the ships's quartermaster, and the captain's adopted son, or so it is said, almost as cruel and cold as his father. He has ignored Yugi until now, so it's disconcerting to have those piercing eyes focused on him. Gozaburo shuts the door, dismissing the rest of the crew, and delivers his ultimatum. 

"Whoever puts it together, I'll make my own heir," he promises with a smile that doesn't reach his eyes. "As long as it's kept secret from the crew, or the pieces will never stay put long enough to complete it."

Seto is unimpressed by that promise. "That would mean Gozaburo intends to leave anything behind to inherit," he scoffs when the two of them are alone. "Mark my words, when the captain decides to retire, it will only be when he's squeezed every bit of gold he can get from this crew, and we'll be left with an empty ship, and the crew all hanged, most likely."

Yugi doesn't care about the money or the captain, but he does love puzzles, and the intricately-wrought pieces promise to be a great challenge. One he has every intention of winning.


	3. Chapter 3

Sailors tell all sorts of stories to each other about sirens, but there are some things no human alive has heard of. Things even sirens prefer to leave unspoken of and unnamed. The siren is more comfortable with the dark than most of his kind, but this is the first time he has ever petitioned the Deep.

There is a place he knows where, at the bottom of the ocean, there is a jagged chasm slicing through the seafloor like a scar. He doesn't know how deep it goes (he doesn't think anybody knows), nor does he know what exactly lives down there. What he does know is that there is magic in this world as black and eldritch as the pit he now stares at, and it lives at the bottom of it. 

And if a siren is very brave and very clever, they can bargain with the Deep for a spell.

The siren's journey to the land will be a tricky one, and he considers his next action carefully. The magic is hungry, and like all spells, it requires a sacrifice. The siren hunts dolphins and porpoises, creatures that had legs once and gave them up, as offerings to the Deep, until finally, he recognizes that the sacrifice the magic demands is not one to be paid in blood.

The siren first awakened with a rope around his neck-- a necklace with a single golden loop tied at the end. His "puzzle piece." He's worn it proudly for as long as he can remember. 

Yugi's laughter echoes through his head, warming his chest, and it's not unlike the way he feels admiring his treasure. It scares him a little how rapidly the human has burrowed into the siren's heart like he was always meant to be there. He wonders if it's some sort of spell. He wonders if it's love.

He wonders whether he would know the difference.

There's only one thing in his possession that will cover the cost of this spell. He fingers the rope around his neck thoughtfully. Is he willing to give up one treasure for the chance of another? Trade his past for a possible future? Reluctantly, he drops the gold into the Deep, trying to ignore the pang of loss.

And then it is loaned back to him, shining with magic. As long as he wears this puzzle piece, the siren knows, he will be able to walk on land, as he must have done all those years ago, in that life he doesn't remember. As Yugi does. 

Which reminds him-- he will need a name on the surface. His original name, whatever it was, is lost along with his other memories. And, as vast and lonely as the ocean is, no one has asked him for a name for-- well, a very long time.

The Deep is silent and stretches seemingly endlessly. Even here, at the very edge of the chasm, sunlight barely pierces the water, and he is nearly blind. When he looks down, all he can see is darkness.

He smiles to himself, thinking it a fitting name. The sailors he eavesdrops on most frequently call it "Yami," and so Yami he will be as well. He climbs to the surface, dreaming of life above the waves, and clasps his treasure tightly to his chest.


	4. Chapter 4

When they pull into port two weeks later, Yugi is no closer to solving the puzzle. The final shape can't be determined yet, and the pieces seem to fit together or clash on a whim. It's like the puzzle is taunting him. Seto has all but given up on it already. He tries to piece it together for a few minutes at a time, and inevitably stares at the puzzle like it's personally offended him and shoves the box to Yugi before going to sulk. 

It doesn't help that Yugi hasn't been sleeping well. Every time he turns around, he feels like something is watching him. Some of his new shipmates claim to see shadows in the water-- there one moment and gone the next. Something as long as a shark, but with a disconcertingly human head. Sirens, they warn in whispers. Hungry ghosts are following them.

It's considered bad luck, and Yugi is unsurprised when a few men disappear as soon as they reach land. Apparently their fear of drowned ghosts outweighs their fear of Gozaburo Kaiba. Not Yugi, though. If sirens are calling to him-- well, the call of that unsolved puzzle is stronger. Besides, it isn't like Yugi is superstitious. He doesn't believe in sirens.

Considering the rumors that are spreading about Captain Gozaburo's ship, new sailors to replace the deserters are hard to come by. Nevertheless, there is one eager, if unnerving, recruit to replace them.

It isn't just that there is a sailor brave enough to ignore talk of sirens. Yugi's distress has a much more personal source, because the resemblance between him and this new recruit is uncanny. Not identical, to be sure, but close enough that he wonders whether there's something his mother or grandfather has neglected to tell him.

If the young man is similarly rocked by their shared appearance, he does not show it. Instead, he smiles at Yugi. His mouth is full of bright white teeth, and Yugi is reminded of a shark, though they are as blunt as anyone's else's--and yet, his face shows what Yugi swears is genuine joy as the stranger shakes his hand and introduces himself.

"Yugi! It is Yugi, right? You can call me Yami." For some reason, it never occurs to Yugi to ask how Yami had learned his name so fast.

________________________

Yami has the worst sea legs of anyone Yugi has ever met. He can hardly walk five paces without grabbing the rail for balance while Yugi watches skeptically.

"Have you ever been on a ship before in your life?" he has to ask.

Yami squints thoughtfully at the question, unphased by its rudeness. "Well, I must have at some point. How else would I have ended up where I have?"

It's true Yami doesn't act like someone who'd grown up on the island port they'd picked him up at. He takes in everything around him, on sea or on land, with the same sense of childlike wonder. Yugi's pretty sure he's never worked as a sailor before, much less a pirate. But the ship needs a crew, and Seto and the captain are not in a position to turn down a willing recruit, however strange he may be. 

"It is a lot harder than I thought it would be," Yami says casually one night, standing on the deck looking out at the water. "The motion of the waves is very different up here."

Yugi has no clue what that means. Despite all of that, though, Yugi likes Yami. Few people are as passionate about games as Yugi, and someone who can match his skill is a treasure. At the beginning, Yami is unfamiliar with many of them, but he learns quickly, and he's whip smart. A dangerous--and intriguing--combination.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This marks the last of the pre-written chapters, so updates will not be as frequent as they have been in the past. I'm starting a new job tomorrow, so we'll see how that affects my schedule. I am working on the next chapter, and hopefully the Other Yugi will show up by chapter six.
> 
> I also want to thank everyone who's left comments or kudos on this fic so far! I really appreciate it.


	5. Chapter 5

Yugi has not wasted time making friends, and he introduces Yami to them eagerly. Jounouchi is Yugi’s staunchest ally; he smiles at Yami with a look that threatens to murder him if anything were to happen to Yugi. Yami can’t help but like him.

Honda likes to play the backup to Jounouchi’s tough-guy facade, but while he shows himself capable of holding his own when he needs to, he’s quicker to settle things peacefully than his friend. It takes a while to see past his dumb muscle act, but Yami realizes that’s exactly what it is–- an act.

Mai is used to being a loner. One of the few woman pirates, she is slow to trust. She acts distant from the rest, but it’s obvious to Yami that the woman has a soft spot for Yugi’s group of misfits.

So does Mokuba. It’s a surprise to nearly everyone he meets when they find out he’s Seto Kaiba’s younger brother. Compared to his “family,” the young cabin boy is positively outgoing. He obviously idolizes Seto–and no crewman stays long if they try to mess with him.

Seto is the most perplexing of all. He’s disdainful, insulting, and arrogant. Yami’s not entirely sure what to make of him. By all appearances, the quartermaster seems to ignore Yami as though he’s beneath Seto’s notice, but sometimes, out of the corner of his eye, Yami thinks he sees Seto studying him, picking him apart as though he’s an insect on a table Seto wants to dissect.

Yami doesn’t think he likes Seto very much.

They might be friendly, but they _are_ still pirates, and so Yami keeps his treasure hidden safely beneath his shirt. If any of them notice anything strange, nobody says anything.

________________________

Eventually, Yami realizes he may not be the only one hiding something. There’s a faraway look in Yugi’s eyes, and he notices the other boy’s fingers twitch idly as though impatient to do something else.

Yami is not averse to a night-time swim, though he’s careful to make sure he’s alone whenever he sheds his human form. The only time he nearly gets caught is when he’s not the only one sneaking about where he’s not meant to be. The shadowy figure nearly scares him out of his skin until he realizes it’s Yugi, and that he hasn’t noticed Yami. He slips into the captain’s quarters, and Yami, curious, can’t help but follow.

It’s a small room between the deck and the captain’s sleeping chamber, and by the dimmed light of a lamp, Yami can see Yugi sitting at the lone table with something gleaming gold spread out on the table before him. The artifact, whatever it is, looks like a pyramid of some sort–or at least, it did, at some point. Now it’s barely more than a disconnected outline surrounded by hollow chunks of gold being sifted through by Yugi.

It’s a puzzle, and the pieces all look very much like the one hanging from Yami’s neck. Yugi freezes when he sees that Yami has found him, and stares wide-eyed, wondering what he’ll do.

Yami isn’t sure what it is he wants himself. He _knows_ that puzzle, recognizes it deep in his bones, though he doesn’t know how or from where. It calls to him, and the siren-strong draw has him clutching the puzzle piece around his neck. He barely hesitates before he pulls the golden loop out from underneath his shirt, and he watches Yugi’s eyes widen in recognition.

“I _knew_ there was something missing,” Yugi breathes quietly. Neither of them wants to be overheard here and now.

“I thought it was just broken,” Yami admits.

Yugi studies the piece for a moment and sorts through the pile in front of him until he finds what he’s looking for. He holds up a slab of gold whose grooves seem to match the ones on the bottom of the loop. They slot into place and it’s a perfect fit.

Yami is so entranced that for a moment that he doesn’t notice Yugi speaking, until–- "–-Where you found it?“ Yugi’s eyes meet his, questioning, and Yami bites his lip.

"I don’t remember. I just know… I’ve had it for a long time.”

Yugi’s violet eyes burn with curiosity, but he manages to hold his tongue. He stares at the unfinished puzzle and sighs. “I need that piece… if I don’t finish the puzzle, the captain will take it away. You can have my share–-”

“No!” Yami draws away unconsciously as he grasps his treasure and tries to ignore the way Yugi’s face falls. “I can’t…” It’s all that’s keeping him from revealing his siren nature, and he doesn’t think Yugi is ready for that yet. Much less the rest of the crew. He looks up, reluctant. “At least,” he says as he clasps his hands around Yugi’s, still holding a half-formed puzzle, “Not until the rest of it’s solved.”

At that point, well… Yami guesses he’ll figure that part out when they get there, but for now, he thinks Yugi’s relieved smile is worth it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really need to remember to not force myself to write fic chapters in order, it usually does more harm than good. And probably wait till the story's finished before posting them.  
> Eh, this story will continue to update whenever an appropriate chapter is finished. I may post other bits to my tumblr (riantmeretseger) in the meantime, as well as other YGO-related stuff in general.


End file.
